Surgical fastener

ABSTRACT

A surgical fastener is provided for various surgical fastening applications, including attaching an implantable prosthesis, such as a soft tissue repair fabric, to tissue and/or muscle. The surgical fastener may include a coil body and a separate head that is attached to the coil body. The head may include an internal thread that is threadably attached to the coil body. The head may also be further secured to the coil body with a compression fit therebetween. A locking feature may prevent back-out of the coil body from the head. The surgical fastener may be assembled by threading the coil body through the head.

FIELD

Disclosed embodiments are related to a surgical fastener, and moreparticularly, to a surgical fastener that includes a coil body with anattached head.

BACKGROUND

Surgical fasteners are widely used in many different medical procedures.For example, staples, sutures, clips and other fasteners are commonlyused in laparoscopic and open surgical procedures.

SUMMARY

In one aspect of the invention, a surgical fastener comprises a coilbody and a separate head that is attached to the coil body. The coilbody includes a plurality of coil windings and has a proximal end and adistal end. The head includes a through hole with an internal threadthat is threadably attached to the coil body.

In another aspect of the invention, a surgical fastener comprises a coilbody, a separate head that is attached to the coil body, and at leastone locking feature that secures the head to the coil body. The coilbody includes a plurality of coil windings and has a proximal end and adistal end. The head includes a through hole adapted to receive a guiderod of a delivery device. The coil body is attached to the head by acompression fit.

In another aspect of the invention, a method of assembling a surgicalfastener comprises threading a coil body that includes a plurality ofcoil windings through a separate head, and securing the coil body to thehead with a portion of the coil body extending from a proximal face ofthe head.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

Various embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way ofexample, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic top view of a surgical fastener;

FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view of the surgical fastener of FIG.1;

FIG. 3 is a schematic front view of the surgical fastener of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a schematic side view of the surgical fastener of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a schematic top view of a surgical fastener coil body;

FIG. 6 is a schematic perspective view of the surgical fastener coilbody of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a schematic front view of the surgical fastener coil body ofFIG. 5;

FIG. 8 is a schematic side view of the surgical fastener coil body ofFIG. 5;

FIG. 9 is a schematic top view of a surgical fastener head;

FIG. 10 is a schematic perspective view of the surgical fastener head ofFIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is a schematic front view of the surgical fastener head of FIG.9;

FIG. 12 is a schematic side view of the surgical fastener head of FIG.9;

FIG. 13 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the surgical fastenerhead of FIG. 9;

FIG. 14 is schematic perspective view of a surgical fastener coil bodyand head being assembled;

FIG. 15 is a schematic perspective view of the surgical fastener coilbody and head of FIG. 14 in the assembled state;

FIG. 16 is a schematic front view of a surgical fastener coil body;

FIG. 16A is a schematic enlarged view of the surgical fastener coil bodyof FIG. 16;

FIG. 17 is a schematic top view of a surgical fastener head;

FIG. 17A is a schematic enlarged view of the surgical fastener head ofFIG. 17;

FIG. 18 is a schematic perspective view of a surgical fastener coil bodyand head being assembled;

FIG. 19 is a schematic perspective view of the surgical fastener coilbody and head of FIG. 18 in the assembled state;

FIG. 20 is a schematic side view of a laparoscopic delivery device;

FIG. 21 is a schematic exploded perspective view of the laparoscopicdelivery device of FIGS. 20; and

FIG. 22 is a schematic exploded perspective view of the stationerymandrel and rotatable cannula.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

It should be understood that aspects of the invention are describedherein with reference to the figures, which show illustrativeembodiments in accordance with aspects of the invention. Theillustrative embodiments described herein are not necessarily intendedto show all aspects of the invention, but rather are used to describe afew illustrative embodiments. Thus, aspects of the invention are notintended to be construed narrowly in view of the illustrativeembodiments. In addition, it should be understood that aspects of theinvention may be used alone or in any suitable combination with otheraspects of the invention.

A surgical fastener is provided for various surgical fasteningapplications. For example, the surgical fastener may be used to attachan implantable prosthesis, such as a soft tissue repair fabric, totissue and/or muscle. Other non-limiting applications for the fastenermay involve joining portions of tissue and/or muscle together, joiningportions of tissue and/or muscle to bone, and/or joining an implantableprosthesis to bone.

In one embodiment, a surgical fastener may include a coil body and aseparate head that is attached to the coil body. This arrangement mayimprove the manufacturability of the fastener and reduce costs,particularly as compared to costs associated with injection molding acomplex surgical fastener. This arrangement may be particularly suitedfor manufacturing the head and coil body from different materials.

For the purposes of this application, a transverse dimension of the coilbody or head generally refers to a dimension of the coil body or headwithin a plane that is perpendicular to a long axis of the surgicalfastener when it is assembled (e.g. a diameter of a cylindrical coilbody, a width of a rectangular head, the length of a side of atriangular coil body, etc. . . . ). For example, an outer transversedimension of the coil body would refer to the lateral distance betweenopposing outer surfaces of the coil body and an inner transversedimension of the coil body would refer to the lateral distance betweenopposing interior surfaces of the coil body. The outer transversedimensions of the head T_(H) and coil body T_(C) in one embodiment areillustrated in FIG. 3 and correspond to the width of the head and thediameter of the coil body. It should be noted that in embodiments inwhich the head and/or the coil body are noncircular, the head and/orcoil body may have both minimum and maximum transverse dimensions.

In some embodiments, a coil body may be configured to receivetherethrough a guide mandrel of a delivery device and, for someapplications, to mate with a corresponding external thread on the guidemandrel. The head may also be configured to have a transverse dimensionthat is larger, such as wider or greater in diameter, than an outertransverse dimension of the coil body to engage and secure underlyingmaterial and/or tissue. The head may include one or more features thatcooperate with corresponding features of a delivery device for drivingthe fastener from the device and into an implantable prosthesis and/ortissue, bone, or muscle.

Depending on the embodiment, the head may include an internal threadthat is threaded to the coil body and attaches the head to a proximalend of the coil body. The head may also be secured to the coil body witha compression or press fit between the head and a portion of the coilbody. The portion of the coil body may be located at a proximal endthereof. The head may include a cavity, such as a counterbore to athrough hole, that receives the portion of the coil body therein toprovide the compression or press fit. More specifically, the portion ofthe coil body received in the cavity may have an outer transversedimension in a relaxed state that is larger than, or equal to, atransverse dimension of the cavity to create the compression or pressfit as the coil body is threaded to the head. The portion of the coilbody received in the cavity may include approximately a half turn ormore of at least one coil. It should be understood that other locationsand ways of providing a compression or press fit between the coil bodyand head might be used.

In addition to the coil body possibly being attached to the head with acompression or press fit between the head and a portion of the coilbody, and/or being threaded together, in some embodiments, a lockingfeature may secure the head to the coil body, for example, to preventback-out of the coil body from the head. In one embodiment, a lockingfeature may include a recess located on the head and a hook located atthe proximal end of the coil body that engages the recess to secure thehead to the coil body. In another embodiment, a locking feature mayinclude an abutment located on the head that is engaged by a proximalend of the coil body to secure the head to the coil body. The head mayinclude a ramp to guide the coil body into the head with the lockingfeature being located at an end of the ramp. Other types of lockingfeatures are contemplated as the current disclosure is not so limited.

In some embodiments, a surgical fastener may be assembled by threadingthe coil body to the head, and in some embodiments, a coil body may alsobe secured to the head to avoid backing out and/or rotation of the coilbody relative to the head in an appropriate fashion. In such anembodiment, the distal end of the coil body, which may be configured topenetrate an implantable prosthesis, bone, muscle and/or tissue, may beinserted into and threaded through the proximal end of the head until atleast a portion of a coil at the proximal end of the coil body engageswith and becomes secured to the head. Alternatively, in someembodiments, such as when there is no corresponding threading on thehead, at least a portion of the coil body may be compressed and insertedinto the head and released to secure the coil body to the head.

In one illustrative embodiment shown in FIGS. 1-4, the surgical fastenermay include a coil body 102 and a separate head 100 that is attached toa proximal end of the coil body 104. The distal end of the coil body 106may be configured for penetrating an implantable prosthesis, tissue,muscle, and/or bone. In one embodiment, the distal end 106 may include asharp distal tip, although the distal end may employ any suitableconfiguration as should be appreciated by one of skill in the art.

As depicted in FIGS. 5-8, the coil body 102 includes a plurality of coilwindings 108. As illustrated, the coil windings 108 may be arranged in ahelical or spiral configuration suitable for driving the fastener intoand through prosthetic material, tissue, muscle and/or bone. Thus, thecoil body may be cylindrical in shape with a circular cross-section,though other cross-sectional shapes such as triangular, rectangular, orany other appropriate shape also are contemplated. The coil body 102 mayinclude any number of coil windings 108 with any desired spacing orpitch between the coil windings and any transverse dimension, includingouter and inner transverse dimensions, suitable for a particularapplication as should be appreciated by one of skill In one embodiment,the coil body may include coil windings having the same transversedimension. However, if desired, one or more of the coil windings mayhave different transverse dimensions relative to each other. Forexample, the coil body may employ coil windings that decrease in sizefrom the proximal end toward the distal end to form a coil body with aconical or tapered shape.

The head 100 may have any suitable configuration desired for aparticular application, see FIGS. 1-4 and 9-13. In one embodiment, thehead 100 includes, but is not limited to, a generally flat distal face110 from which extends the coil body 102. The opposite or proximal face112 of the head may have one or more generally flat, round, angled,and/or beveled surfaces, or combinations thereof, as should be apparentto one of skill

To facilitate rotation of the fastener, the head 100 may include one ormore drive features 114 that may be engaged by a drive member of adelivery device to rotate the head 100, and thereby rotate the fastenerincluding the coil body 102. As best shown in FIGS. 9-13, the head mayinclude one or more drive features 114 corresponding to one or moreindents, depressions, or recesses along its outer periphery that areconfigured to receive and engage a corresponding feature of a drivemember, such as one or more longitudinal internal ribs of a rotatableouter tube or cannula, of the delivery device. However, it is to beappreciated that the head may include any number of drive features withany suitable configuration as should be apparent of one of skill.

To facilitate orientation of the fastener within a delivery device, thehead may include one or more alignment features 116 that coact with acorresponding feature of the delivery device to ensure properorientation of the fastener. In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 9-13, theone or more alignment features 116 correspond only to one side of thehead 100 having a generally flat configuration and free of a drivefeature so that the fastener can only be inserted into the deliverydevice with the head 100 oriented in a particular direction relative toa drive member of the delivery device, not depicted. In this manner, thedelivery device may be loaded with a stack of fasteners that areoriented with their distal tips located at the same angular positionrelative to each other for delivery and insertion. It is to beappreciated that an alignment feature 116 is not required, but ifdesired, the head may include any number of alignment features with anysuitable configuration as should be apparent to one of skill

In one embodiment, the head 100 may be attached to the coil body 102 bythreading the coil body and head together. As illustrated in FIG. 13,the head 100 may include an internal thread 118 that corresponds to andis threaded to the coil body 102 as depicted in FIGS. 14-15 and 18-19.As shown in the figures, the internal thread 118 may be located in athrough hole 120 that extends through the head 100. The coil body 102may be attached to the head 100 by inserting the distal end of the coilbody 106 into the through hole 120 in a distally directed direction fromthe proximal face of the head 112 and rotating the coil body 102 and/orthe head 100, as indicated by the arrow, to thread the componentstogether until the proximal end of the coil body 104 is positioned at orwithin the head 100. Alternatively, in some embodiments, the proximalend of the coil body 104 might be inserted into the through hole 120from the distal face of the head 110 to assemble the head 100 and coilbody 102. Depending on the embodiment, overthreading of the coil body102 relative to the head 110 during assembly may be prevented bycontrolling the amount of rotation during assembly. Alternatively, whenappropriate interlocking features or interferences may be used tocontrol the assembly, and overthreading of the coil body 102 relative tothe head 110 may be prevented by monitoring an assembly force or torquethreshold. Other methods of preventing overthreading are also possible.

As noted above, the coil fastener may employ a variety of arrangementsfor further securing of the head to the coil body to prevent backoutand/or rotation of the components after threading them together orotherwise attaching them. For example, in one embodiment, the head maybe secured to the coil body using a compression fit between the head anda portion of the coil body, such as a portion of at least one coilwinding, although other suitable arrangements may be employed to securethe head to the coil body. It should be understood that a compressionfit could also be used without threads to both attach and secure thecoil body to the head. The compression fit may also help preventoverthreading of the coil body relative to the head because the assemblytorque will increase when the coil winding corresponding to thecompression fit portion of the coil body begins to engage with thethreads.

One embodiment of a compression fit is illustrated in FIGS. 9-13. Asillustrated in the figures, the head 100 may include a cavity 122extending inwardly from the proximal face 112 that is larger than thethrough hole 120. In this manner, the cavity 122 may be in the form of acounterbore located proximal to the through hole, although othersuitable arrangements may be utilized. A proximal-most coil winding 124,or a portion thereof, located at the proximal end 104 of the coil body102 has an outer transverse dimension that is larger than a transversedimension of the cavity 122 and may also be larger than the outertransverse dimensions of the other coil windings 108, see FIGS. 5-8 and10-14. In one embodiment, the proximal-most coil winding 124 may includeapproximately a half turn or more of a coil winding. As the coil body102 is threaded, or otherwise positioned, into the head 100, theproximal-most coil winding 124 will become radially compressed inwardlyas it enters the cavity 122 to create a compression or otherwise snugfit, such as a friction fit, between the coil and the cavity wall tosecure the head 100 and coil body 102 together. The proximal-most coilwinding 124 may also engage the bottom of the cavity 122 to position thecoil body relative to the head 100 and prevent the coil body 102 frombeing threaded through the head. If desired, more than one coil windingmay be compressed into the head 100 to secure the head 100 and the coilbody 102 together.

The coil fastener may employ an additional arrangement to further securethe head to the coil body to prevent the coil body from being backed outof the head after it has been fully assembled. For example, in oneembodiment, the head may include a locking feature that engages acorresponding portion of the coil body to fully secure the componentstogether.

In one illustrative embodiment shown in FIGS. 9-15, a head 100 mayinclude a locking feature 126 such as an abutment located within thecavity 122 that engages with the proximal tip 128 of the coil body toavoid back-out of the coil body 102 when the coil body is fully threadedinto the head 100. To guide and facilitate engagement between thelocking feature 126 and the proximal tip 128 of the coil body, the head100 may include a ramp 130 or other ramp-like feature within the cavity122 that guides the proximal-most coil winding into the cavity andtowards the locking feature 126. The ramp 130 may be configured toterminate above the bottom of the cavity 122 to form the noted abutmentat the end of the ramp.

In another embodiment as shown in FIGS. 16-19, a head 100 may include alocking feature 126 such as a recess or notch at a peripheral locationof the bottom of the cavity 122 and the coil body 102 may include a hook132 or hook-like feature at the proximal tip 128 that engages therecess, or other locking feature 126, when the coil body 102 is fullythreaded into the head 100. When the hook 132 is engaged with the recessor notch, or other locking feature 126, the components are lockedtogether and back-out of the coil body 102 from the head 100 due to therotational force applied to the coil body during deployment isprevented. To guide and facilitate engagement between the lockingfeatures, the head 100 may again include a guide, such as a ramp 130 orother ramp-like feature, located within and extending to the bottom ofthe cavity 122 that guides the proximal-most coil winding 124 into thecavity 122 and the hook 132 into the locking feature 126 which islocated adjacent the lower end of the ramp 130.

In one embodiment, a hook 132 may be integrally formed with the coilbody by forming, such as by bending, the proximal tip of theproximal-most coil into a desired configuration suitable for engagingthe recess. Alternatively, if desired, a separately manufactured lockingfeature may be attached to the proximal tip of the coil body in anysuitable manner as should be apparent to one of skill in the art.

In one embodiment, a surgical fastener may include a coil body having alength of approximately 3 mm to approximately 6.5 mm extending from thedistal face of the head. The coil body may include approximately 2.5turns to approximately 6 turns of coil windings having an outertransverse dimension of approximately 2.5 mm to approximately 4.9 mm(0.098 inches to 0.193 inches), for delivery through a 5 mm cannula,with a pitch of approximately 0.7 mm to approximately 1.1 mm (0.03 to0.045 inches). The proximal-most coil winding may have about 0.5 to 1turns with a relaxed outer transverse dimension of approximately 2.9 mm(0.115 inches) for insertion into a head cavity having a transversedimension of approximately 2.8 mm (0.110 inches) to approximately 2.85mm (0.112 inches) to create a compression fit between the coil windingand the head. The head may also include an internal thread thatcorresponds to the coil body for threading the components together. Thehead may have an outer transverse dimension of approximately 2.7 mm toapproximately 4.98 mm (0.106 inches to 0.196 inches) and a thickness ofapproximately 0.97 mm (0.030 inches) to approximately 1.02 mm (0.04inches) with a cavity depth between approximately 0.46 mm (0.018 inches)to 0.64 mm (0.025 inches). Of course, the surgical fastener may employ acoil body and head having any suitable sizes and configurations for adesired application as should be apparent to one of skill in the art.

The surgical fastener may be made from one or more biocompatiblematerials that are suitable for a particular surgical application and issterilized or sterilizable. Additionally, the fastener components may bemade from a non-absorbable material, an absorbable material or acombination of absorbable and non-absorbable materials. The componentsmay also be made from, and/or coated with, materials and/or includefeatures that may resist tissue ingrowth and/or adhesions, permit tissueingrowth and/or adhesions, or a combination thereof. The components maybe made from metal, plastic and/or any other suitable biocompatiblematerials as should be apparent to one of skill in the art.

In one embodiment, the head may be made from a plastic polymerincluding, but not limited to, polyether ether ketone (PEEK) or acetal,and the coil body may be made from a metal including, but not limitedto, stainless steel, nitinol, or titanium. If desired, the head alone orthe head and the coil body may be made from an absorbable metal and/orpolymer. While specific materials are noted above, any appropriatecombination of materials could be used for the head and coil body.

In one exemplary embodiment, the surgical fastener may have an overalllength of approximately 4.5 mm with a coil length extending from thehead of approximately 3.5 mm. The head also has a thickness ofapproximately 1 mm and a transverse dimension of approximately 4.2 mm(0.164 inches). The coil body has an outer transverse dimension ofapproximately 2.7 mm (0.105 inches) and is formed of 0.46 mm (0.018inch) metal wire to have a constant pitch of approximately 0.91 mm to1.07 mm (0.036 inches to 0.042 inches). Other dimensions for the coilbody and head are also possible.

The various embodiments of a surgical fastener may be delivered to asurgical site using a delivery device that imparts rotation to thefastener and drives the fastener into prosthetic material, tissue,muscle and/or bone. As shown in FIGS. 20-22, the delivery device 200 mayinclude a handle 202 including a trigger 204 at a proximal end of thedevice. The delivery device 200 may also include an outer tube orcannula 206 extending in a distal direction from the handle 202 and amandrel 208 that extends along the length of the outer tube or cannula206 for supporting and/or guiding one or more fasteners 214 within thecannula. The mandrel 208 may include an external thread 210 thatcorresponds to and mates with the coil body 102 and/or head 100 of theone or more fasteners 218 to assist with delivery and installation of adistal most fastener with the delivery device 200. In some embodiments,the mandrel 208 is a stationary mandrel and a rotatable cannula 212, orother appropriate rotator, is configured and arranged to engage androtate the head of each fastener. When the trigger 204 of the deliverydevice 200 is actuated a transmission 206 rotates the rotatable cannula212 relative to the mandrel 208 thus rotating each fastener 214 aboutthe mandrel 208. Rotation of the fasteners 214 about the threadedmandrel 208 in turn provides a reactive thrust to the fasteners causingthe fasteners to be driven in a distal direction along the length of themandrel 208, out of a distal end of the cannula 206, and into theprosthetic material and/or tissue.

While a laparoscopic delivery device has been depicted in the abovefigures, the current disclosure is not so limited. Instead, thecurrently disclosed surgical fasteners may be used with any appropriatedevice capable of deploying the disclosed surgical fasteners. Forexample, the surgical fasteners could also be used in other deliverydevices such as an endoscopic device, a borescopic device, a catheter, asurgical instrument for use in “open” procedures, or any otherappropriate surgical instrument.

It should be understood that the foregoing description of variousaspects of at least one embodiment of the invention are intended merelyto be illustrative thereof and that other embodiments, modifications,and equivalents of the invention are within the scope of the inventionrecited in the claims appended hereto. Accordingly, the foregoingdescription and drawings are by way of example only.

1. A surgical fastener comprising: a coil body including a plurality ofcoil windings, the coil body having a proximal end and a distal end; anda separate head that is attached to the coil body, the head including athrough hole with an internal thread that is threadably attached to thecoil body.
 2. The surgical fastener according to claim 1, wherein thecoil body is further secured to the head by a compression fit betweenthe head and a portion of the coil body.
 3. The surgical fasteneraccording to claim 2, wherein the portion of the coil body includes atleast a half turn of a coil winding.
 4. The surgical fastener accordingto claim 2, wherein the portion of the coil body is located at theproximal end thereof.
 5. The surgical fastener according to claim 2,wherein the head includes a cavity that receives the portion of the coilbody therein to secure the coil body to the head.
 6. The surgicalfastener according to claim 5, wherein the cavity is located proximal tothe internal thread.
 7. The surgical fastener according to claim 5,wherein the cavity is larger than the through hole.
 8. The surgicalfastener according to claim 5, wherein the portion of the coil body hasan outer transverse dimension in a relaxed state that is larger than, orequal to, a transverse dimension of the cavity to create a compression,or press, fit as the coil body is threaded to the head.
 9. The surgicalfastener according to claim 1, wherein the head includes a lockingfeature that engages the coil body to secure the head to the coil body.10. The surgical fastener according to claim 9 wherein the lockingfeature includes a recess and the coil body includes a hook that engagesthe recess to secure the head to the coil body.
 11. The surgicalfastener according to claim 9, wherein the locking feature includes anabutment that is engaged by the proximal end of the coil body to securethe head to the coil body.
 12. The surgical fastener according to claim11, wherein the head includes a guide adjacent the internal thread, theabutment being located at an end of the guide.
 13. The surgical fasteneraccording to claim 12, wherein the guide is a ramp.
 14. The surgicalfastener according to claim 1, wherein the head includes at least onedrive feature that is engageable by a drive member of a delivery deviceto rotate the surgical fastener.
 15. The surgical fastener according toclaim 14, wherein the head includes an outer periphery and the at leastone drive feature is located at the outer periphery.
 16. The surgicalfastener according to claim 1, wherein the coil body is constructed andarranged to mate with a corresponding external thread on a guide rod ofa delivery device.
 17. The surgical fastener according to claim 1,wherein the head is attached to the proximal end of the coil body.
 18. Asurgical fastener comprising: a coil body including a plurality of coilwindings, the coil body having a proximal end and a distal end; aseparate head that is attached to the coil body, the head including athrough hole adapted to receive a guide rod of a delivery device, thecoil body being attached to the head with a compression or press fittherebetween; and at least one locking feature that secures the head tothe coil body.
 19. The surgical fastener according to claim 18, whereinthe head is attached to a portion of the coil body located at theproximal end thereof.
 20. The surgical fastener according to claim 19,wherein the portion of the coil body includes approximately a half turnor more of a coil winding.
 21. The surgical fastener according to claim19, wherein the head includes a cavity that receives the portion of thecoil body therein to secure the coil body to the head.
 22. The surgicalfastener according to claim 21, wherein the portion of the coil body hasan outer transverse dimension in a relaxed state that is larger than, orequal to, a transverse dimension of the cavity to create the compressionor press fit as the coil body is attached to the head.
 23. The surgicalfastener according to claim 18, wherein the at least one locking featureincludes a recess located on the head and a hook located at the proximalend of the coil body that engages the recess to secure the head to thecoil body.
 24. The surgical fastener according to claim 18, wherein theat least one locking feature includes an abutment located on the headthat is engaged by the proximal end of the coil body to secure the headto the coil body.
 25. The surgical fastener according to claim 24,wherein the head includes a guide constructed and arranged to guide theat least one coil, the abutment being located at an end of the guide.26. The surgical fastener according to claim 18, wherein the guide is aramp.
 27. The surgical fastener according to claim 18, wherein the headincludes at least one drive feature that is engageable by a drive memberof a delivery device to rotate the surgical fastener.
 28. The surgicalfastener according to claim 27, wherein the head includes an outerperiphery and the at least one drive feature is located at the outerperiphery.
 29. The surgical fastener according to claim 18, wherein thecoil body is constructed and arranged to mate with a correspondingexternal thread on a guide rod of a delivery device.
 30. A method ofassembling a surgical fastener, the method comprising an act of: (a)threading a coil body that includes a plurality of coil windings througha separate head to attach the coil body to the head; and (b) securingthe coil body to the head with a portion of the coil body extending froma proximal face of the head.
 31. The method according to claim 30,wherein the head includes an internal thread, and act (a) includesthreading the coil body through the internal thread.
 32. The methodaccording to claim 30, wherein act (b) includes compressing a portion ofthe coil body within the head to securely attach the coil body to thehead.
 33. The method according to claim 32, wherein act (b) includescompressing approximately a half turn or more of a coil winding within acavity located on the head.
 34. The method according to claim 32,wherein the portion of the coil is larger than the cavity.
 35. Themethod according to claim 34, wherein the cavity is larger than theinternal thread.
 36. The method according to claim 30, wherein act (b)includes engaging the coil body with a locking feature provided on thehead.
 37. The method according to claim 30, wherein act (b) includesengaging a hook at a proximal end of the coil body with a correspondingrecess on the head.
 38. The method according to claim 30, wherein act(b) includes engaging a proximal end of the coil body with an abutmenton the head that prevents the coil body from being backed out of thehead.